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Because you signed up on our website and asked to be notified, I’m sending you this special recall alert. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, please click the “unsubscribe” link at the bottom of this message.

Hill’s Pet Nutrition is expanding its recall of specific lots of its Prescription Diet and Science Diet dog foods due to elevated levels of vitamin D.

Very high levels of vitamin D can lead to serious health issues in dogs, including kidney dysfunction.

To learn which products are affected, please visit the following link:

Pet parents with dogs who have consumed any of the products listed and are exhibiting any of these signs should contact their veterinarian.

In most cases, complete recovery is expected after discontinuation of feeding.

Where Were the Products Sold?

In the United States, the affected canned dog foods were distributed through retail pet stores and veterinary clinics nationwide.

No dry foods, cat foods, or treats are affected.

Message from the Company

Hill’s Pet Nutrition learned of the potential for elevated vitamin D levels in some of our canned dog foods after receiving a complaint in the United States about a dog exhibiting signs of elevated vitamin D levels.

Our investigation confirmed elevated levels of vitamin D due to a supplier error.

We care deeply about all pets and are committed to providing pet parents with safe and high quality products.

Hill’s has identified and isolated the error and, to prevent this from happening again, we have required our supplier to implement additional quality testing prior to their release of ingredients.

In addition to our existing safety processes, we are adding our own further testing of incoming ingredients.

This voluntary recall only impacts canned dog food and primarily in the United States.

It is being conducted in cooperation with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

What to Do?

Pet parents who purchased the product with the specific lot/date codes listed should discontinue feeding and dispose those products immediately.

To have discarded products replaced at no cost or for further information…

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January 28, 2019 — The Minnesota Department of Agriculture is notifying consumers of a recall of raw turkey pet food from Woody’s Pet Food Deli due to Salmonella contamination.

This recall was issued after product samples collected by the MDA tested positive for Salmonella.

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What’s Being Recalled?

The recalled product was sold in 5-pound plastic containers labeled “Woody’s Pet Food Deli Raw Free Range Turkey” and can be identified by the white date sticker on the cover of the pet food container.

The product was sold at Woody’s Pet Food Deli locations in Minneapolis, St. Paul and Woodbury.

The following three lots of product are being recalled:

Woody’s Pet Food Deli Raw Free Range Turkey
Use by date: 01/10/20

Woody’s Pet Food Deli Raw Free Range Turkey
Use by date: 01/12/20

Woody’s Pet Food Deli Raw Free Range Turkey
Use by date: 01/15/20

No other lots of Woody’s Pet Food Deli products are affected by the recall.

What Caused the Recall?

Sampling was begun after the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) identified a human case of Salmonella linked to the pet food.

The person with Salmonella infection was identified as part of an ongoing, multistate investigation of Salmonella Reading infections coordinated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

MDH’s interview of the person revealed that Woody’s Pet Deli raw ground turkey pet food was regularly fed to a pet in the household.

The pet also tested positive for Salmonella, but not the outbreak strain.

In February 2018, MDA and MDH investigated two other cases of Salmonella Reading that matched the outbreak strain and were linked to raw ground turkey pet food from a different manufacturer.

About Salmonella

Symptoms of Salmonella infection include diarrhea, abdominal pain and fever.

Symptoms usually begin within 12 to 96 hours after exposure, but they can begin up to two weeks after exposure.

Infections usually resolve in five to seven days, but about 28 percent of laboratory-confirmed cases require hospitalization.

If you’ve handled these products or had contact with an animal that has eaten these products, become ill and are concerned about your health, please consult your health care provider for more information.

After eating or coming into contact with Salmonella-containing food, pets can spread the bacteria from their mouths, saliva, fur and feces, even if they’re not showing signs of illness, to humans and other animals in the household.

Pet dishes, floors and the environment around the feeding station should be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected.

Pets with a Salmonella infection may be lethargic and have decreased appetite, diarrhea, fever and vomiting.

Pets exposed to contaminated food can also be infected without showing symptoms.

If your pet has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms, contact your veterinarian.

Salmonella bacteria can survive for weeks in the household environment, which can serve as a continuing source of infection.

CDC does not recommend feeding a raw meat diet to pets because it can make animals and people sick.

If you choose to use pet food containing raw meat, follow CDC’s tips for healthy feeding.

What to Do?

If you have recalled product in your home, you should throw it out or return it to a Woody’s Pet Food Deli for a full refund.

Do not feed the contaminated product to pets.

Consumers with questions can contact the Woody’s Pet Food Deli stores directly at the following phone numbers:

The FDA is issuing this warning because the affected product represents a serious threat to human and animal health and is adulterated under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.

Lystn LLC (doing business as Answers Pet Food) recalled the affected product from distribution and retail locations in the state of Nebraska on December 20, 2018, but has not yet recalled the product nationwide.

The FDA is still working with Lystn to gather comprehensive distribution information and is issuing this warning to alert consumers about this public health risk.

About Salmonella

Salmonella is a bacterium that can cause illness and death in humans and animals, especially those who are very young, very old, or have weak immune systems.

People infected with Salmonella can develop diarrhea, fever and abdominal cramps.

Most people recover without treatment, but in some people, the diarrhea may be so severe that they need to be hospitalized.

In these patients, the Salmonella infection may spread from the intestines to the blood stream and then to other body sites unless the person is treated promptly with antibiotics.

Consult your health care provider if you have symptoms of Salmonella infection.

Pets do not always display symptoms when infected with Salmonella, but signs can include vomiting, diarrhea (which may be bloody), fever, loss of appetite and/or decreased activity level.

If your pet has these symptoms, consult a veterinarian promptly.

Why FDA Concerned About Salmonella in Pet Food

Pet foods contaminated with pathogens such as Salmonella are of particular public health importance because they can affect both human and animal health.

Pets can get sick from Salmonella, and may also be carriers of the bacteria and pass it onto their human companions without appearing to be ill.

Once Salmonella gets established in the pet’s gastrointestinal tract, the animal can shed the bacteria when it has a bowel movement, and the contamination will continue to spread.

Because animals can shed the bacteria when they have bowel movements, it’s particularly important to clean up the animal’s feces in yards or parks where people or other animals may become exposed, in addition to cleaning items in the home.

Federal law requires all pet food to be free of pathogens, including Salmonella.

Pet food manufacturers must effectively manage sourcing of ingredients, processing and packing to control pathogens.

Without an effective control, such as cooking, raw pet food is more likely than other types of pet food to contain pathogens such as Salmonella.

Pet owners who choose to feed raw pet food should be aware of the risks associated with these products.

What to Do?

Pet owners who have this lot of A+ Answers Straight Beef Formula for Dogs should discard it in a secure container where other animals, including wildlife, cannot access it.

Consumers who have had this product in their homes should clean refrigerators/freezers where the food was stored and clean and disinfect all bowls, utensils, food prep surfaces, pet bedding, toys, floors, and any other surfaces that the food or pet may have had contact with.

Clean up the pet’s feces in yards or parks where people or other animals may become exposed.

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Columbia River Natural Pet Foods of Vancouver, WA, is expanding its recall to include 2 of its dog and cat food products because they have the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella and Listeria bacteria.

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December 24, 2018 — Columbia River Natural Pet Foods of Vancouver, WA, is expanding its recent recall to include additional dog and cat foods due to their potential to be contaminated with Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes.

The recall includes 261 packages of Cow Pie Lot # 72618 and 82 packages of Chicken & Vegetables Lot# 111518 fresh frozen meats for dogs and cats, produced in July 2018 and November 2018.

Cow Pie and Chicken and Vegetables are fresh frozen meat products intended to be fed raw to dogs and cats.

Both were distributed in Alaska, Oregon, and Washington through retail stores and direct delivery.

The Cow Pie product comes in frozen 2-pound purple and white plastic bags with Lot# 72618 found on an orange sticker.

The Chicken and Vegetables product comes in frozen 2-pound turquoise and white plastic bags with Lot # 111518 found on an orange sticker.

No illnesses have been reported to date.

About Salmonella and Listeria

Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes can affect animals eating the products and there is risk to humans from handling contaminated pet products, especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with the products or any surfaces exposed to these products.

Healthy people infected with Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes should monitor themselves for some or all of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramping and fever.

Consumers exhibiting these signs after having contact with this product should contact their healthcare providers.

Pets with Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes infections may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever, and vomiting.

Some pets will have only decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain.

Infected but otherwise healthy pets can be carriers and infect other animals or humans.

If your pet has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms, please contact your veterinarian.

What Caused the Recall?

The potential for contamination was noted after testing by the Washington State Department of Agriculture revealed the presence of Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella in one package of Cow Pie and Salmonella in one package of Chicken & Vegetables.

What to Do?

Consumers who purchased the product should discontinue use of the product and return for a full refund or exchange by returning the product in its original packaging to place of purchase.

Consumers with questions may contact the company at 360-834-6854 Monday to Friday from 8 AM to 4 PM PT.

This recall is being made with the knowledge of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

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Dangerous Levels of Vitamin D Discovered in Several Dog Food Brands

CAUTION — ONGOING SITUATION

Last Updated December 7, 2018
December 7, 2018 — The FDA is alerting pet owners and veterinary professionals about recalls of several dry dog foods after receiving complaints that dogs eating the food experienced vitamin D toxicity.Testing found that samples of the affected foods contained as much as 70 times the intended amount of vitamin D.

Very high levels of vitamin D can cause serious health problemsin dogs, such as kidney failure or death.

Veterinarians should be aware that vitamin D toxicity may present as hypercalcemia, similar to dogs that have consumed a rodent killer.

At this time, the only pet products that are affected by this recall are foods made for dogs.

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G & C Dog and Cat Food Recall Expands to Include Multiple Brands

October 24, 2018 — G & C Raw of Versailles, Ohio, is recalling all products lots manufactured from February 27, 2018 through July 20, 2018, because they have the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes.

Affected products are sold under the brand names G & C Raw Dog Food and G & C Raw Cat Food and sold through direct distribution to customers.

Product Image

No product images have been provided by either the company or the Food and Drug Administration.

About Listeria

Listeria monocytogenes, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in animals eating the products.

Furthermore, there is risk to humans from handling contaminated pet products, especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with the products or any surfaces exposed to these products.

Healthy people infected with Listeria monocytogenes should monitor themselves for some or all of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, aches, fever, and diarrhea.

Listeria monocytogenes infections can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems.

Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, Listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.

Consumers exhibiting these signs after having contact with this product should contact their healthcare providers.

Pets with Listeria monocytogenes infections are rare, and pets may display symptoms such as mild to severe diarrhea, anorexia, fever, nervous, muscular and respiratory signs, abortion, depression, shock, and death.

In addition to the possibility of becoming sick, such infected animals can shed Listeria monocytogenes through their feces onto their coats and into the home environment and thus serve as sources of infection to humans and other animals in the household.

If your pet has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms, please contact your veterinarian.

Where Was Product Distributed?

Recalled products were distributed by direct delivery and may have been sent to the following states:

Georgia

Illinois

Indiana

Kentucky

Michigan

North Carolina

Ohio

Pennsylvania

Tennessee

What’s Being Recalled?

The manufacture dates are included at the end of the lot number.

For example, the pet food product manufactured on February 27, 2018 has a lot code of that ends with 022718.

The company is now recalling all products with lot numbers that end in 022718 through 072018.

The recalled dog food products include:

Beef Veggie Mix Dog Food

Ground Beef Dog Food

Sliced Beef Heart Dog Food

Ground Beef Heart Dog Food

Kim’s Special Beef Organ Dog Food

Ground Chicken Dog Food

Chicken Veggie Mix Dog Food

Chicken Mix Patties Dog Food

Duck Veggie Mix Dog Food

Ground Duck Dog Food

Ground Rabbit Dog Food

Rabbit Veggie Mix Dog Food

Ground Lamb Dog Food

Lamb Veggie Mix Dog Food

Ground Beef Pancreas Dog Food

Beef Liver Chunks Dog Food

Beef Sweet Breads Dog Food

Ground Pork Dog Food

Pork Veggie Mix Dog Food

Shelby’s Pork Organ Mix Dog Food

Ground Pollock Dog Food

Turkey Veggie Mix Dog Food

Ground Turkey Dog Food

Tripe Dog Food

The recalled cat food products include:

Pat’s Cat Beef

Pat’s Cat Chicken

Pat’s Cat Turkey

Pat’s Cat Duck

Pat’s Cat Rabbit

No confirmed illnesses have been reported to date.

What Caused the Recall?

The recall was initiated as the result of a routine sampling program by the Ohio Department of Agriculture which revealed that some finished products contained the bacteria.

What to Do?

Consumers who have purchased the products are urged to return them to G & C Raw, 225 N. West Street, Versailles, OH, for a full refund.

Consumers with questions may contact G & C Raw at 937-827-0010 from 9 to 5 pm Easter Time or by email at mgcrawdogfood@yahoo.com.

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A collection of items has been crossing my ‘in-box’ in recent weeks and while many of the topics are, on the face it, not connected, for reasons I am not entirely sure about they seem to fall under the same umbrella; as in being of the same coherent theme.

Let me list some of these topics: the age of the universe; climate change; CO2 levels; the certainty of death; the history of the last half-million years; what our dogs teach us; and more!

Naturally, Jeannie and I have been kicking around these topics, aided and abetted by Dan Gomez, my Californian friend of some 40 years (and my ‘Best Man’ when Jean and I were married in 2010 and, more or less directly, the catalyst of me and Jean meeting in 2007!)

But I get the sense that many of you wonderful people that follow this place also scratch your head not infrequently and ponder on these ‘interesting’ times.

I don’t have any answers. But I do want to share how, over the last few weeks, I have been seeking some meaning, some peace, to the big issues that have the potential to make these times pretty uncomfortable if not a tad scary.

I shall not be extending this introspection each day but probably ( and I’m guessing) a couple of times a week I shall be dipping into the barrel!

Starting off with climate change, maybe tomorrow or Wednesday.

But what of today!

Today I am publishing another Dog Food Recall alert that came out late last week!

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Performance Dog Pet Food Recall

September 12, 2018 — Bravo Packing, Inc. of Carneys Point, New Jersey, is recalling all Performance Dog products, a frozen raw pet food, because they have the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella.

The manufacture date codes are printed on the boxes that contain the plastic sleeves, but not on the individual plastic sleeves.

Therefore, if the cardboard box has been discarded, there are no unique identification numbers on the individual sleeves that allow customers to determine that they possess the recalled products.

If you purchased this product since July 14, 2018 and cannot determine whether it is affected by the recall, the FDA recommends that you exercise caution and throw the product away.

About Salmonella

Salmonella can cause illness in animals eating the products, as well as people who handle contaminated pet products, especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with the products, infected animals or any surfaces exposed to these products.

Healthy people infected with Salmonella should monitor themselves for some or all of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramping and fever.